What we learned Saturday from the last full day of college hoops before Christmas:

1. Michigan State a darkhorse. For the Big Ten title. For the Final Four. Dare we say, for the national title. The difference between contenders Duke/Michigan/Indiana and the Spartans is far less than you think. The Spartans have two big bodies in Derrick Nix and Adreian Payne, a veteran point guard in Keith Appling, a do-it-all wing in Branden Dawson and a budding star shooter in Gary Harris. Oh, and Tom Izzo on the bench.

Michigan State is one of several contending teams from the Big Ten. (AP Photo)

2. Kevin Dillard is tougher than you. The Dayton star point guard left Wednesday night’s game in a wheelchair, his back pain so severe he couldn’t walk. On Saturday, he played 37 minutes through the pain. Although never comfortable and unable to sit during timeouts and breaks, Dillard scored 16 points in the second half to lead the Flyers to an NCAA Tournament resume-building win over Murray State.

3. Khalif Wyatt can meet a challenge. Just three days removed from an embarrassing 10-point loss to Canisius, the Temple senior point guard delivered a masterful performance against No. 3 Syracuse. Wyatt controlled the tempo, worked Syracuse’s zone like a puppet master, scored a career-high 33 points and led the Owls to an 83-79 upset.

4. Michael Carter-Williams is a target. Perhaps Jim Boeheim regrets not suspending his star point guard after a shoplifting “misunderstanding.” Since his detention by mall cops became public, MCW has hit only 4-of-21 shots in two games. On Saturday, Temple fans serenaded him with "Lord & Taylor" chants and on the court the Owls dared Carter-Williams -- the nation’s assist leader at 10.7 per game -- to match Wyatt’s scoring and he hit only 3-of-15 attempts while handing out only four assists.

5. Gators missing the point. If Florida had a point guard, the Gators don’t turn the ball over four times in the final minute and lose at Arizona last weekend. If the Gators had a point guard, they handle Kansas State’s tough half-court defense Saturday night, get better shots and win. If Florida had Kasey Hill (top-10 recruit for ’13) right now, they’d be undefeated and be No. 2 in the country. Hill’s not walking through that door until next fall, and without him the Gators appear to be fatally flawed.

6. The A-10 race to be amazing. Perhaps only the Big Ten race will be as thrilling and exhilarating as the Atlantic 10’s. Within the last week, Butler has upset No. 1 Indiana and Temple has knocked off No. 3 Syracuse and neither club was picked to finish in the top three of the A-10. VCU’s sharpshooting defensive piranhas remain the favorite, but Butler, Temple, Saint Joseph’s, Xavier, Dayton and Saint Louis all could challenge the Rams.

7. It’s great to be a Hoya for the holidays. Georgetown, winners of seven straight since losing in overtime to Indiana on Nov. 20, now has a two weeks off before opening Big East play Jan. 5 at Marquette. With such a long break, the Hoyas can go home for Christmas, get fat on eggnog and Aunt Jenny’s pecan pie and still have plenty of time to round back into shape before their next game.

8. The clock is ticking on Kevin O'Neill. Ben Howland isn’t the only coach in L.A. feeling the heat. Coming off a six-win season, O’Neill thought USC was primed for a bounce-back year behind healthy point guard Jio Fontan and healthy big man Dewayne Dedmon and three good transfers. Saturday’s loss to Georgia was the Trojans’ seventh in their last eight games. O’Neill is now 45-63 in four years at USC.

9. Beware of Nate Wolters. It’s not easy for NBA scouts to get to Brookings, S.D., but they make the trek to watch this maestro. Wolters handles the ball with care and precision, can attack the rim or launch long jumpshots and has a mid-range game rare for a college player. On Saturday, he scored 28 points and handed out seven assists in an upset at No. 16 New Mexico.

10. There’s hope for Ryan Harrow. Kentucky fans all but gave up on Harrow after he missed most of the first five games with an illness, an undisclosed family issue and a crisis of confidence. He has started the last two games and now has his swagger back. He scored a career-high 23 points Saturday against Marshall, adding four rebounds, four assists and three steals. Next up: Louisville on Dec. 29. If Harrow maintains his poise against the Cardinals’ vicious press, there’s good reason to believe the young Wildcats again will be a force come March.